Reminiscing

The Good Old Days

Remember what it was like, not so long ago, when Bhakti-Devi was here?

We could chant with a carefree joy in our hearts.

We swam in a lake of friendship and laughter.

The sweetness of the mood was beautiful ... so attractive.

That mood should have been protected at all costs.

These other things: buildings, power, political and social followers, members of your party who agreed with your ideas, alliances, self-respect and delusions of grandeur, even all of your overcollected, useless knowledge, and your dry kirtana. These things are just external and have no place in the realm of Bhakti-Devi.

Now She's gone away!

:(

tarunkrsnadas
Servant of ALL the devotees

Shine a Light

Blind in the Dark

It comes as no surprise
that I received spiritual eyes
by the sweet, loving mercy of my Gurudevas,
but still ...
"It's too dark here,
I can't see."

tarunkrsnadas
Servant to ALL the devotees

Perhaps

Perhaps

Perhaps none of us are right. Did you ever think of that?

tarunkrsnadas
Servant of ALL the devotees

PS. There used to be a funny show on TV that used some song as its theme, the chorus of which resounded to "Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps." Sorry, I couldn't resist stringing three perhaps together like that, but perhaps it's all just as well, perhaps, perhaps, maybe.

Knowing

Jnana is not necessarily Knowledge

Knowledge that does not support bhakti is just jnana, useless, even offensive.

tarunkrsnadas
Servant to ALL the devotees

Perfect Timing

What Chronological Array?

Don't fool yourself, the past no longer exists but it accumulates as the present NOW.

The future doesn't exist here and it never will; all it could ever be is simply another accumulation of past events accumulating as another now.

tarunkrsnadas
Servant to ALL the devotees

Oceanic

The Sea of Nectar

If we take the time to notice, all around us are living entities, trillions of them. We live in an ocean of life. Life, as we know is composed of spirit souls and of their Lordships.

If we live in a material mode of life we experience little of the life around us, mostly that it's an ocean of suffering and that all the sharks and crocodiles are to blame for our unwelcome experiences, our minds dwelling instead upon how to get and generate things for the body and mind, and thus, according to our ability (karma) creating pleasurable experiences and their consequential unpleasurable experiences. Rarely, if ever, do we actually understand what's going on.

Guru Connects Us to the Network of Love

Those with some connection (via a bona fide guru) have some clarity of experience regarding this ocean of life and those who are the recipients of Srila Gurudeva's mercy in an adequate measure are aware, according to their ability, of the loving nature of Sri Sri Radha Krsna, the source and nature of all life, and can understand that we not only swim in an ocean of life but that we swim (or drown, according to our inclination/level of conscoiusness) in an ocean of love that extends far beyond the material confines of any manifestation of Brahma.

The BIG Picture

Beyond the confines of the limited, materialistic existence, and encompassing all of existence in Her essential nature we live active, individual life eternally within an ocean of love; we have no fears. We support each other in service to the pure love of Sri Sri Radha Krsna. This ocean of love and joy is our natural home.

Knowing this, only a foolish person, such as myself, would waste even a mere moment indulging in the evil, rotting stench of material life.

Please pray for me.

tarunkrsnadas
Servant to ALL the devotees.

Interdependence

SB: 2.10.24

hastau ruruhatus tasya

nānā-karma-cikīrṣayā

tayos tu balavān indra

ādānam ubhayāśrayam

SYNONYMS

hastau — the hands; ruruhatuḥ — manifested; tasya — His; nānā — various; karma — work; cikīrṣayā — being so desirous; tayoḥ — of them; tu — however; balavān — to give strength; indraḥ — the demigod in heaven; ādānam — activities of the hand; ubhaya-āśrayam — dependent on both the demigod and the hand.

TRANSLATION

Thereafter when the Supreme Person desired to perform varieties of work, the two hands and their controlling strength, and Indra, the demigod in heaven, became manifested, as also the acts dependent on both the hands and the demigod.

PURPORT

In every item we can note with profit that the sense organs of the living entity are never independent at any stage. The Lord is known as the Lord of the senses (Hṛṣīkeśa). Thus the sense organs of the living entities are manifested by the will of the Lord, and each organ is controlled by a certain type of demigod. No one, therefore, can claim any proprietorship of the senses. The living entity is controlled by the senses, the senses are controlled by the demigods, and the demigods are the servants of the Supreme Lord. That is the arrangement in the system of creation. The whole thing is controlled ultimately by the Supreme Lord, and there is no independence either of the material nature or of the living entity. The illusioned living entity who claims to be the lord of his senses is under the clutches of the external energy of the Lord. As long as a living entity continues to be puffed up by his tiny existence, he is to be understood to be under the stringent control of the external energy of the Lord, and there is no question of liberation from the clutches of illusion (māyā), however much one may declare himself a liberated soul.

Copied from http://vedabase.net/

tarunkrsnadas
Servant to ALL the devotees

All Alone

So Far Away

Sometimes Sri Sri Radha Krsna seem so far away, beyond the stars, when I can't even reach the clouds.

tarunkrsnadas
Servant to ALL the devotees

Free The People

Freedom where no man is an island

The rules of freedom

Although in my 60s, I am by no means an antique, nevertheless I've lived long enough and wide enough to have noticed that people feel threatened by my freedom, that they tend to "make decisions for me" about how they think I should live and what choices I make, and then they base whether they like me or not upon how much I comply with their rule book.

Cookbook of disaster pie recipes

Whilst I recognise that due to the plethora of idiots that populate much of society it is often necessary to have social guidelines such as "If you murder your fellow man we're gonna hang you," etc, although those with power can, and do, thwart such rules by the use of propaganda to influence community thinking thereby furthering the same, useless process.

Sheep in a race have no winners even if they are first to arrive at the end of the race

It makes no sense at all to enforce the letter of social law over the spirit of social law, especially in minor matters that relate to mere personal choice such as in recognisable but unnecessary "social conventions" or mere fashions, that may or may not "work" for the masses, as such rules are dogmatically accepted, followed and enforced by the sheepish masses with nary a thought as to their origins or intended purposes, or even their levels of effectiveness.

Choosing choice

As long as we are not wilfully hurting others, especially out of pure spite, it makes sense that we actually can (and maybe even should) excercise our freedom to think for ourselves without being afraid of what those around us will think.

Role playing game

Thus, I could be forgiven for imagining that people must play this "game" with themselves. That would explain why they have few to no original ideas; cliches abound in such circumstances.

Coupled to these self-imposed "brain police" restrictions, this irrational fear of thinking freely would explain why so many people lead such mediocre lives, never once imagining that there is much more available even right here, without even venturing anywhere else, to look for satisfaction in life.

Acceptance signifies the beginning of love

Undeniably, your ability to offer freedom to others determines your own level of freedom, in an organic, dynamic, living, wholistic, interactive, social system such as ours on planet Earth. If we could only let go of the prison to which we foolishly cling so tightly, we could all be free. If you can give up your fear of other people being different to you, and accept their right to think for themselves, everybody gains. The choice is yours.

tarunkrsnadas
Servant to ALL the devotees

Where are You?

Lost in the Stars

Where is the light
that brightens your skies?
You're spending your days in a dream.
Your life's just a game
for the twisted insane,
making you just need to scream.

You've been lost in your life,
life after life,
freezing and suffering and crying through the night.
When are you gonna go home?
I'd like to tell you
that I'll try do it for you
but I've lost my heart in the stars.
Lost in the stars.
I'm lost in the stars.

Tell me the truth
"Are you really uncouth,
your friendship just a facade?
What happens in the end
when you've lost all your friends,
is it all just the luck of the cards?"

Compelled by your pain,
a leaf in the rain,
holding tight to your hatred and spite.
Should I try to give kindness,
your wild bloody-mindedness
takes advantage; a "revenge" against right.

You've been lost in your life,
life after life,
freezing and suffering and crying through the night.
When are you gonna go home?
I'd like to tell you
that I'll try do it for you
but I've lost my heart in the stars.
Lost in the stars.
I'm lost in the stars.

Lacking endurance,
you offer assurance,
worthless and packaged for fools.
"Are you using your fury
as judge and as jury;
your suffering, an excuse to be cruel?"

Where is the love that warms to contain you?
Where is the heart that yearns to sustain you?
Pray to the Lord; ask for advice.
If you want my opinion,
you're just one of the minions,
never caring for others, just trying to look nice.

You've been lost in your life,
life after life,
freezing and suffering and crying through the night.
When are you gonna go home?
I'd like to tell you
that I'll try do it for you
but I've lost my heart in the stars.
Lost in the stars.
I'm lost in the stars.

Slave to the master,
of impending disaster,
compelled by the fear in your mind.
"Ain't it time that you started
behaving softhearted,
giving your love to the stars in the sky?"

You've been lost in your life,
life after life,
freezing and suffering and crying through the night.
When are you gonna go home?
I'd like to tell you
that I'll try do it for you
but I've lost my heart in the stars.
Lost in the stars.
I'm lost in the stars.


tarunkrsnadas

Servant to ALL the devotees

Sensitivity

Clutching at Straws

In this world our opinion of ourselves is not appropriate. Hell! We don't even know who we are but we still like to think that we know ourselves. We like to think of ourselves as good people and only see our own faults when it is politically expedient to do so.

Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. Integrity doesn't actually apply to us; we are desperate, clutching at straws.

But whilst you're doing that, don't forget that sensitive people in an insensitive world need your kindness.

tarunkrsnadas
Servant to ALL the devotees

Seva

How to Serve Srila Gurudeva

First get it perfect then loosen it up a little to make it more natural.

tarunkrsnadas
Servant to ALL the devotees

Pride

False Ego Falls Down to Hell

Pride is so unreasonable for we'd rather die a million times than accept who we are.
We'd rather cry a trillion tears than to love with all our heart.

tarunkrsnadas
Servant to ALL the devotees

Surprise Demise

Belly Up

If you try to be yourself you just get talked down.
If you try to pretend, you'll go mad in the end,
better keep it to yourself
keep it to yourself
till you go belly up!

Who's gone belly up, belly up, belly up?
You've gone belly up, belly up, belly up!
We've gone belly up, belly up, belly up
time and time and time again.

If you think that you can think, then think and think again.
Thoughts are not your own, you can't think at all my friend,
better keep it to yourself
keep it to yourself
till you go belly up!

Who's gone belly up, belly up, belly up?
You've gone belly up, belly up, belly up!
We've gone belly up, belly up, belly up
time and time and time again.

You try for gold, you're sold and sold, the lies you're sold, you just get old.
You believe that you're alive, you believe the lies you're told.
better keep it to yourself
keep it to yourself
till you go belly up!

Who's gone belly up, belly up, belly up?
You've gone belly up, belly up, belly up!
We've gone belly up, belly up, belly up
time and time and time again.

All the graves of young men lost in wars to save us all.
From some imaginary foe who didn't exist at all,
better keep it to yourself
keep it to yourself
till you go belly up!

Who's gone belly up, belly up, belly up?
You've gone belly up, belly up, belly up!
We've gone belly up, belly up, belly up
time and time and time again.

The fools that make the rules believe that they're so cool.
Lust for power, just turns sour, and fools are just a fool,
better keep it to yourself
keep it to yourself
till you go belly up!

Who's gone belly up, belly up, belly up?
You've gone belly up, belly up, belly up!
We've gone belly up, belly up, belly up
time and time and time again.

You sold your soul lifetimes ago, you're owned but you don't know.
You search for joy, you're just a toy, around and round you go,
better keep it to yourself
keep it to yourself
till you go belly up!

Who's gone belly up, belly up, belly up?
You've gone belly up, belly up, belly up!
We've gone belly up, belly up, belly up
time and time and time again,
time and time and time again
again, again, again,
again, again, again,
never, never ends,
it never, ever ends.
Belly up, belly up,
you just go belly up,
time and time again,
time and time again.

tarunkrsnadas

Servant to ALL the devotees

Escape Velocity

Spiritual Lobotomy

If you die now
what you are seeing is the last thing you will see
in this life.
Your thoughts will carry you over.
No, my child,
you may not wake up.
The frozen wasteland of your heart
will determine
the content of your next dream.
Your screaming, the soundtrack.
Your anger, the mood.
Your sadness and hatred
shall diffuse in your blood
as you strangle your soul for revenge.
Thus, nothing shall change.
There! You didn't even notice it,
did you?
"Doesn't remember a thing
except the implanted memories.
Good!
Next patient please nurse."

tarunkrsnadas
Servant to ALL the devotees